Method of making tubular turnbuckles



Nov. 21, 1944. c. L. DEWEY METHOD OF MAKING TUBULAR TURNBUCKLES Filed July 6, 1942 ill m======= 5% M Iw sa 22%;m

4 ffllll lfffffflh ll V Patented Nov. 21, 1944 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFlCE -METHOD OF MAKING TUBULAR TURNBUCKLES Clarence L. Dewey, Elkhart, Ind.

Application July 6, 1942, Serial No. 449,913

2 Claims.

arate units of the general configuration required in the production of turnbuckles in preparation for further manipulation and; the threading required for the completed article.

The Dewey process in and of itself is capable of distributing the metal to the desired degree, but the unit thus produced will be circular in cross section throughout so that additional fabrication is required for flattening the sides of the body to produce a hexagonal or otherwise fiatpaneled effect for the purpose of affording flat surfaces adapted to be engaged by a wrench or similar tool.

Further details will appear from a description of the invention in conjunction with the accompanying drawing, wherein- Figure 1 is a view partly in section of a continuous length of tubing configured by the Dewey process to afford a plurality of units to be fabricated into turnbuckles;

Fig. 2 is a unit section of said tubing before final fabrication;

Fig. 3 is a view showing the unit having the side walls of the body flattened inwardly to produce a hexagonal paneled effect;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the same having the neck sections tapped to provide the necessary threads; and

Fig. 5 is anend view of the completed turnbuckle.

In carrying out the method of the present invention, a continuous length of cylindrical tubing of maximum diameter, shown in Fig. l, is subjected to a configuring operation of the character defined in the Dewey patent aforesaid which has the eifect of producing a series of connected units H! of the character shown in the medial portion of Fig. 1 with portions of adjoining units connected thereto.

Each unit section consists of a unit body portion ll of full diameter and of the original wall thickness of the tubing, which wall thickness is materially less than the wall thickness of the con nected neck portions I2 which are of reduced overall diameter toaflord adequate wall thickness to provide for the threading operation to be afterwards performed.

Each neck portion i2 is connected to the unit body portion by a shoulder portion I3 through whichthe wall thickness progressively decreases from the thick walled neck portion to the thin walled unit bodyportion. After a suitable length of tubing has been configured in the manner described, several unit sections are cut through at the middle portion 54 of the adjoining connected neck sections to produce a unit of the form shown in Fig. 2, which. however, at this stage is circular in cross section throughout. The units thus iormed can be passed through a hexagonal die block which deforms the metal of the body to form six fiat sided panels 55 separated by intervening ridges it which retain'the diameter and curvature of the original tubing. Although it is preferred to produce the flattening or panelling efiect on the individual units, it is possible to run the uncut configured tubing of, Fig. 1 through suitable mechanism to produce the flattening of the body portions throughout the entire length of tubing by continuous operation in advance of severing of the tubing in unit lengths.

In addition to the flattening of the body walls to produce the panel effect, it is necessary to provide threads ti on the interior of each of the necks at the opposite ends of the body, and this operation can be formed either before or after the flattening of the body, although in ordinary practice it may be desirable to flatten the body walls in advance of the threading operation.

It is not intended therefore to limit the claims to the sequential order in which the steps of severing, flattening and threading are recited.

The threads in the companion necks are oppositely pitched so that when the turnbuckle is assembled with threaded rods or similar connections, it will serve in the usual manner as a turnbuckle. By producing tumbuckles in the manner described, it is possible from a continuous length of cylindrical tubing of uniform wall thickness to rapidly and accurately configure a multiplicity of unit sections, each of which will have the metal distributed in such a way as to afford abundant strength with a body configuration of suflicient diameter to readily receive and hold a. wrench, and with suflicient strength at all points to resist tensile and torsional strains.

the reception of oil or grease which may be employed to lubricate the threads and prevent rusting or corrosion thereof.

I claim:

1. The method of producing turnbuckles which consists in subjecting a section of metal tubing of length suflicient to produce at least two units, to a configuring operation, which reduces the diameter and thickens the wall of the intermediate portion and each end portion of each section, severing the intermediate portion to provide two units, each consisting of a medial body of relatively larger diameter and lesser wall thickness, terminating ateach end in a neck of relatively lesser diameter and greater wall thickness than the intermediate body, flattening the body to provide angularly related side faces, and threading the interior of each neck.

2. The method of producing tumbuckles which consists in subjecting a section of metal tubing of length suflicient to produce at least two units, to a configuring operation, which reduces the diameter and thickens the wall of the intermediate portion and each end portion of each section, and provides intermediate shoulders converging and progressively increasing in wall thickness toward 

